Analysis: A look back at the last year

August 09, 2004|By LISA DOUBLESTEIN NEWS-REVIEW STAFF WRITER

It's pretty much what you'd expect for a community knee-deep in the second-longest nursing strike ever: Suspicion. Hostility. Uncertainty.

We're all waiting for a break in the thick silence that's called an impasse. We're waiting for nurses to stop hurting. We're waiting for a hospital's financial report to be released, since they won't release it themselves. We're waiting for the head honchos and mouthpieces and representatives involved to return to acting like the people we know instead of robots and stiff white shirts and politicians.

But there's one thing that has been vividly, continuously, openly happening over the past year.

History has been made.

About half of all registered nurses at Northern Michigan Hospital took to the picket line on Nov. 14, 2002. They've cited issues such as poor nurse-patient ratios and pensions and a lack of respect from both doctors and administration. The Teamsters Union has filed several unfair labor practice charges against the hospital, but the National Labor Relations Board has either denied the charges or the hospital has agreed to rectify the issues. At this point, the strike is an economic strike - the definition used until a strike is deemed an unfair labor practice strike.

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Bargaining is taking place only when the NLRB insists. For NMH's part, administrators say the Teamsters can sign the final offer presented in late December or bite their tongues, because the hospital is not negotiating.

The Teamsters say they have a counter offer to the final offer, but since NMH won't bargain, why bother presenting it?

Strikers have taken to the streets of Petoskey, outside businesses of NMH Board of Trustees members. They've also gone to their homes, with signs and chants and honks of support coming from the streets.

Dozens of strikers have also found jobs elsewhere, in cities and states nationwide. Their spouses and children and friends take their shifts on the line when they're gone - and, most likely, any other roles mom or dad, husband or wife have in the household.

Money is short for them, and a strike fund has been set up for emergency situations. It's maintained by donations from the community, supporters worldwide and a tight network of other Teamsters members.

Working nurses are conflicted with whether or not to support their friends on the line. Many haven't felt the animosity that's so upset striking nurses; others simply couldn't afford to leave.

A ray of hope came when Gov. Jennifer Granholm visited Petoskey early in the summer and promised help from a Blue Ribbon Panel. The panel, made up of three nursing and labor experts, held two public hearings in Petoskey in July to examine the level of health care at the hospital.

Two things happened at those hearings. One, NMH executives didn't show up. A handful of nurses and supporters of the hospital did, but couldn't speak for the administration. And two, nearly every speaker told a tale of woe in his or her dealings with NMH since the strike occurred.

NMH executives met with the Blue Ribbon Panel, in a private meeting much to the dismay of many community members. But the transcripts went into a report that was publicly released in September, complete with recommendations by the panel that included financial revelations by the hospital and restarted negotiations on a contract. In early October, Gov. Granholm went on the record in support of those recommendations.

Still, NMH executives didn't budge, citing political agendas on the part of the governor, whose Democratic Party has received donations from the Teamsters Union.

With the community's patience for the impasse wearing thin and no end in sight, many people were relieved to hear working nurses request a decertification election. While it has the opportunity to oust the Teamsters Union, both supporters and non-supporters of the strike were ready for some sort of action.

Some people were surprised when the Teamsters stepped up and supported the decertification election. A striking nurse, in fact, also filed a request for a decertification election. While the move may have seemed questionable, and created hours of discussion in a public hearing before the National Labor Relations Board, the bottom line is that the striking petitioner now holds a stake in the when and how of the election. In a sense, it evens out the hands in the pot - NMH, the Teamsters, a working nurse, a striking nurse.

Nurses in both camps have been campaigning for their side. Each party is sure they'll win.

And as for the community, most of us are just waiting to hear something other than spokespeople and accusations.